Male urinal with inflatable sealing means



Nov. '21 1967 R. B. CARRIGAN v 3,353,538

MALE URINAL WITH INFLATABLE SEALING MEANS Filed Sept. 2. 1964 j' VINVENTOR Ll BY ATTORNEYS j RICHARD B. CARR/6AM United States PatentOfifice 3,353,538 MALE URENAL WITH INFLATABLE SEALING MEANS Richard B.Carrigan, 20 Dellwood Court, San Rafael, (Ialif. 94901 Filed Sept. 2,1%4, Ser. No. 393,949 6 Claims. ((31. 123-295) ABSTRACT OF THEDESCLOSURE A male urinal suitable for use by ambulatory patients. Theurinal comprises, as its basic elements, a soft rubbery organ receivingreceptacle adapted to loosely receive the organ of a user and anelongate inflatable annular bag of soft rubbery material concentricallyreceived within the receptacle to, upon inflation, effect sealedgripping of an organ received therein. The sole annular seal between thebag and receptacle comprises an annular seal between their rearmostedges. This seal is flexible and adapted to permit the bag to freelyconform with the interior of the receptacle and an organ receivedtherein.

The present invention relates to a male urinal for use by individualsincontinent of urine and is particularly directed to such a urinalemploying an improved arrangement for gripping the organ of its user.

In the prior art, various devices are provided to collect the urine ofmales incontinent of urine. These devices may be divided into twogeneral categories, namely: those for use by bed patients only; andthose for use by bed patients or active persons either while in bed ormoving about. It is the latter category to which the present inventionis primarily directed.

The main deficiency of prior devices in the category of the presentinvention is their failure to provide adequate means for gripping theorgan of the user. This means should ideally provide for readyapplication to the organ of the user and comfortable and leakproofengagement with the organ at all times and under all conditions Withoutundue restriction. The urinal and gripping means thereof should also becapable of being easily cleaned, durable in construction, and adapted tobe universally used on individuals of different sizes without specialtailoring. The latter characteristic is particularly important, since itavoids the expenses encountered in manufacturing and merchandising aplurality of devices tailored to individual sizes.

It is, accordingly, a principal object of this invention to provide anideal male urinal which overcomes the deficiencies of prior art devices.

Another and more specific object of the invention is to provide a maleurinal incorporating an inflatable organ gripping member whichfacilitates the ready insertion of an organ thereinto and the firm andleakproof gripping of the organ.

A further and related object of the invention is to provide a maleurinal incorporating a gripping device which contacts the organ of theuser over an extended length with uniform pressure and thus securelyholds the organ and seals the flow of fluid thereby.

Yet another object of the invention is to provide a male urinalincorporating an organ gripping device which avoids irritation of theusers organ by minimizing relative movement between the device and theorgan, eifectively sealing fluid flow between the organ and the device,and contacting the organ over an extended area as contrasted to aconcentrated area.

Still another object of the invention is to provide a male urinal havingan organ gripping device which limits 3,353,538 Patented Nov. 21, 1967the amount of pressure applied to the organ of its user to a preselectedamount.

A further object of the invention is to provide a support means for usein combination with a male urinal which is adjustable to accommodateusers of various sizes and readily removable from the urinal forindependent cleanmg.

With respect to the latter object, it is another object of the inventionto provide a support means for a male urinal which may be partiallyremoved from the body of the user to facilitate application of theurinal.

The male urinal of the present invention which enables theaccomplishment of the foregoing objects basically comprises a receptaclefor loosely receiving the organ of a user thereof and an inflatable bagmounted concentrically in said receptacle to sealingly engage the outerperiphery of an organ received in said receptacle upon inflation. Thebag is dimensioned so as to engage the peripheral surface of the usersorgan with uniform pressure over a substantial portion of the lengththereof. The basic urinal structure is completed by a seal establishinginterconnection between the outer periphery of the bag and the innerperiphery of the receptacle and an inflation device to selectively applyinternal pressure to the bag.

The support means used in combination with the urinal to accomplish theforegoing objects basically comprises a body encircling supportercomposed of detachably and adjustably interconnected forward andrearward sections, the forward of which is adapted to be releasablysecured to said urinal. In operation, after the support means has beenapplied to the body, the forward portion thereof may be removed tofacilitate the application of the urinal to the user.

The details of the present invention and the foregoing and other objectswill become more apparent when viewed in light of the accompanyingdrawings, wherein:

FIG. 1 is a perspective view of the front of the urinal and supportcombination;

FIG. 2 is an elevational view, partially in section, of the urinal andsupport combination in the process of being applied to a user; and

FIG. 3 is a cross sectional view taken on line 33 of FIG. 2.

Referring now to the drawings, the urinal and supporter therefor areeach designated in their entirety by the numerals 1t and 11,respectively. The urinal 10 basically comprises an outer receptacle orsheath 12 having concentrically mounted therein an inflatable annularbag 13. Both the receptacle 12 and bag 13 are fabricated of a suitablesoft flexible material, such as rubber. The receptacle 12 and bag 13 areprovided with annular flanges 14 and 15, respectively, at the rearwardedges thereof which are adhered together to establish a sealedconnection between the receptacle and bag. Thus, as can be seen fromFIG. 2, the receptacle 12 and bag 13 are sealingly secured together attheir rearward edge, while the bag is free from the receptacle at theforward portion thereof. It is noted that the receptacle 12 isdimensioned to loosely receive the organ of a user thereof, asillustrated in phantom lines at 16 in FIG. 2, while the bag 13 isdimensioned so as to be adapted to engage the organ over a substantiallength thereof. To insure that the bag 13 will firmly and gently engagethe organ of the user upon inflation, it is preferably dimensioned so asto engage the organ over a length at least equal to the diameter of theorgan.

The detailed structure of the bag 13 and the inflation means therefor isbest seen in FIG. 3. From this figure it can be seen that the bagincludes inner and outer walls 17 and 20, respectively, which wallsdefine an air chamber 21 therebetween. The inner wall 17 is of adiameter suflicient to loosely receive the organ of a user prior toinflation of the bag 13. Upon inflation of the bag, the wall 17 isextended into firm engagement with the organ of the user, as illustratedin FIG. 2. It is noted that the loose flexible character of the wall 17assures that it will firmly grip the organ of the user with uniformpressure upon inflation of the bag 13. Fluid to inflate the bag 13 isconveyed thereto through means of a flexible tube 22 which extendssealingly through the wall of the receptacle 12 and the outer wall 20 ofthe bag 13. The end of the tube 22 extending through the wall 13 is openand thus fluid passing through the tube is conveyed into the chamber 21where it functions to inflate the bag.

Air is supplied to the tube 22 through means of a hand operated pump 23communicating therewith through means of a tube 24 and pressure reliefvalve 25. The pump 23 and valve 25 are of conventional character andprovide means whereby the bag 13 may be inflated to a predeterminedpressure, which pressure is selected so that the pressure exerted on theor an of the user by the wall 17 will not inflict injury thereto. Oncethe bag 13 is inflated, the pump 23 is removed from the tube 24, asillustrated in FIG. 1. It is noted that after inflation, the escape ofair from the bag 13 is prevented either by a suitable valvingarrangement in the valve 25, or a second valve at the upper end of thetube 24. Whatever valve arrangement is used to close the tube 22, it isprovided with selective opening means to release pressure from the bag13. Such means are well within the province of those skilled in thevalve art.

The basic urinal structure of the invention is completed by a spoutfitting 26 at the lower end of the receptacle 12. This fitting isadapted to be either closed by a cap 27, as illustrated in FIG. 1, orsecured in fluid communication with an auxiliary receiving reservoir 30,

as illustrated in FIG. 2 in phantom lines. Fluid communication betweenthe receptacle 12 and reservoir 30 is established by a flexible tube 31secured at one end to the fitting 26 and at the other end to thereservoir. Preferably, the reservoir 30 is strapped to the leg 32 of theuser at a position below the receptacle 12. Thus, gravity flow betweenthe receptacle and the reservoir is facilitated. It is noted that thechoice between whether the fitting 26 is capped or secured to areservoir is determined by the amount of fluid capacity desired by theuser.

The supporter 11 for use in combination with the aforedescribed urinalincludes: a body encircling belt consisting of forward and rearwardsections 33 and 34, respectively; an apron secured to and extendingdownwardly from the forward section 33; and, a pair of leg straps 36 and37, each of which is connected at one end to the section 34 and at theother end to the lower extremity of the apron 35. The sections 33 and 34are adjustably and releasably secured together through means of Velcrostrips 40. These strips are separable so that the forward section 33 iscompletely removable from the rearward section 34. Furthermore, thestrips may be secured together in varying degrees of overlappingengagement to accommodate waists of varying sizes. A particularadvantage of the detachable relationship between the sections 33 and 34can be seen from FIG. 2 where the supporter is shown extending aroundthe waist 41 of the user. In this condition, the strips may be releasedto lower the apron 35 to a position facilitating the ready insertion orremoval of the organ 16 from the urinal 10.

The belt sections 33 and 34, apron 35 and straps 36 and 37 are allfabricated of suitable elastic material, such as is conventionally usedfor athletic supporters, to facilitate the comfort of the user. Althoughthe strips 40 are specified as being made of Velcro, it is to beunderstood that other suitable releasable and adjustable connectingstrips, such as strips incorporating snaps, could be used in theirplace.

Releasable attachment of the urinal 10 to the supporter 11 isaccomplished through means of an aperture 42 formed in the apron 35 andmating snaps 43 and 44 on the apron and the urinal, respectively. Thesnaps 43 are located around the periphery of the aperture 42, while thesnaps 44 are secured to the annular flanges 14 and 15. It is noted thatthe snaps 44 are so provided as not to disturb the seal between theflanges 14 and 15. Through this arrangement, it can be seen that theurinal 10 may be readily removed from or applied to the supporter 11from the rear of the apron 35. Thus, the urinal and apron may beseparately cleaned and it is possible that a plurality of supportersmight be provided for use with a single urinal. The lattercharacteristic has the advantage that supporters may be laundered whilethe urinal is in use with other supporters.

At this point it is noted that the section 35 is provided with a loop 45through which the tube 24 may be strung. This loop loosely engages thetube 24 and is simply intended to retain the tube at a convenientlocation.

The donning of the aforedescribed urinal supporter combination isreadily carried out as follows: lift the supporter to the approximateposition illustrated in FIG. 2; lower the forward section 33 and apron35; insert the organ 16 through the bag 13; raise the apron 35 andattach the section 33 to the section 34; and, inflate the bag 13 to acomfortable degree or the maximum degree permitted by the valve 25. Theremoval procedure for the combination is substantially the reverse ofthe donning procedure. With respect to both the donning and theremovable procedures, it is noted that the removable forward section 33permits the apron to be swung to a position where the user can readilymanipulate insertion of the organ into the urinal and visually observethis insertion. This characteristic is particularly advantageous whenthe device is used by elderly people who are not very agile.

To conclude, from the foregoing description it is believed apparent thatthe present invention enables the accomplishment of the objectsinitially set forth herein. In particular, a male urinal with improvedmeans for gently and effectively gripping the organ of the user isprovided. It is to be understood, however, that the invention is notintended to be limited to the specific embodiment illustrated anddescribed, but rather is defined by the following claims.

What is claimed is:

1. In a male urinal, an organ holding device compnsmg:

(a) a soft rubbery receptacle for loosely receiving the organ of a userthereof;

(b) an elongate inflatable annular bag of soft rubbery material looselyreceived in concentric relationship within said receptacle, said bag,upon inflation, being adapted to sealingly engage the outer periphery ofan organ received in said receptacle with uniform pressure;

(c) an annular seal between the rearmost edges of said bag andreceptacle establishing the sole peripheral seal between said bag andreceptacle, said seal being flexible and adapted to permit said bag tofreely conform with the interior of said receptacle and an organreceived therein; and

((1) means to selectively inflate said bag by applying internal pressurethereto.

2. A device according to claim 1 including pressure release means tolimit the amount of internal pressure which may be applied to said bagduring the inflation thereof.

3. A male urinal comprising in combination:

(a) a body encircling belt consisting of forward and rearward sections;

(b) an apron secured to and extending downwardly from said forwardsection;

(c) a pair of leg straps each connected at one end to said apron and atthe other end to said belt;

((1) a soft rubbery organ receiving receptacle secured to said apron,said receptacle being adapted to loosely receive the organ of a userthereof;

(e) an elongate inflatable annular bag of soft rubbery material looselyreceived in concentric relationship Within said receptacle, said bag,upon inflation, being adapted to sealingly engage the outer periphery ofan organ received in said receptacle with uniform pressure;

(f) an annular seal between the rearmost edges of said bag andreceptacle establishing the sole peripheral seal between said bag andreceptacle, said seal being flexible and adapted to permit said bag tofreely conform with the interior of said receptacle and an organreceived therein; and

(g) means to selectively inflate said bag by applying internal pressurethereto.

4. A combination according to claim 3, wherein:

(a) the other ends of said leg strap are connected to the rearwardsection of said belt; and

(b) the rearward and forward sections of said belt are adjustablysecured together and completely releasable from each other.

receptacle is releasably secured to said apron.

6. A combination according to claim 3 including pressure release meansto limit the amount of internal pressure 5 which may be applied to saidbag during the inflation thereof.

References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 919,875 4/1909 Johnson 128-2941,105,488 7/1914 Clare 128-295 2,445,694 7/1948 Predmore 128-2952,699,781 1/1955 Koch 128-295 3,161,198 12/1964 Moxley 128-295 FOREIGNPATENTS 569,645 6/ 1932 Germany.

RICHARD A. GAUDET, Primary Examiner.

20 c. F. ROSENBAUM, Examiner.

1. IN A MALE URINAL, AN ORGAN HOLDING DEVICE COMPRISING: (A) A SOFT RUBBERY RECEPTACLE FOR LOOSELY RECEIVING THE ORGAN OF A USER THEREOF; (B) AN ELONGATE INFLATABLE ANNULAR BAG OF SOFT RUBBERY MATERIAL LOOSELY RECEIVED IN CONCENTRIC RELATIONSHIP WITHIN SAID RECEPTACLE, SAID BAG, UPON INFLATION, BEING ADAPTED TO SEALINGLY ENGAGE THE OUTER PERIPHERY OF AN ORGAN RECEIVED IN SAID RECEPTACLE WITH UNIFORM PRESSURE; (C) AN ANNULAR SEAL BETWEEN THE REARMOST EDGES OF SAID BAG AND RECEPTACLE ESTABLISHING THE SOLE PERIPHERAL SEAL BETWEEN SAID BAG AND RECEPTACLE, SAID SEAL BEING FLEXIBLE AND ADAPTED TO PERMIT SAID BAG TO FREELY CONFORM WITH THE INTERIOR OF SAID RECEPTACLE AND AN ORGAN RECEIVED THEREIN: AND (D) MEANS TO SELECTIVELY INFLATE SAID BAG BY APPLYING INTERNAL PRESSURE THERETO. 